Chapter 1: Treasure's child
Epigraph:
"Some gifts are left where love will find them."
Jessy’s birth came as an unwelcome surprise to her mother, a moment she had neither planned for nor understood. Overwhelmed by fear and uncertainty, she abandoned the newborn near a babies’ home known as Treasure. The night was heavy with mist, and the soft murmur of the sleeping city seemed to swallow the baby’s cries—but the sound did not go unheard.
Later that night, as a group of sisters returned from a night vigil, the echo of their sandals against the cobblestones and the faint scent of incense filling the air, a sudden cry pierced the silence. Rising from the trenches nearby, the sound was small yet urgent—impossible to ignore. Following it, they found the child who had been left behind.
Jessy was taken in by the home, which made every effort to trace her family. Notices were sent, questions asked, doors knocked upon, but all in vain. Those who did not wish to be found had made sure of it.
At Treasure, Jessy was welcomed into a world alive with children of every age, each carrying their own story. There were toddlers who clung to blankets like lifelines, mischievous six-year-olds racing through the courtyard, and older children who bore the quiet weight of memories no one else could see. Visitors often came, bringing toys, treats, or simply their laughter, and for a while the children could forget the hardships that had brought them here. Some were reunited with their families, their joy radiant and uncontainable; others were adopted, leaving the home in bittersweet waves of farewell.
Jessy was wrapped in warmth, fed with patience, and cradled by many hands that loved her without question. Laughter found her early, and by the time she learned to toddle across the sunlit courtyard, the home had become the only family she knew. Even in these early days, there were small sparks of the child she would become: a wide-eyed curiosity, a stubborn grip on the things she loved, and a tiny smile that could lift the heaviest of hearts.
